适量

• Pinyin: shì liàng
• Hanzi breakdown: 适 = 辶 + 啇 (to fit, appropriate — moving toward what suits); 量 = 日 + 一 + 里 (to measure quantity — originally depicting a vessel used to measure grain)

Meaning

Appropriate amount; the right quantity. An amount that is neither too much nor too little for a given purpose.

A practical, prescriptive term most commonly found in recipes, medical dosage instructions, and agricultural guidance — wherever a precise quantity cannot be fixed but must be calibrated to context. 适量 instructs the reader to add or use an amount judged to be right for the situation. Common collocations: 适量添加 (add an appropriate amount), 适量饮水 (drink an appropriate amount of water), 适量施肥 (apply fertiliser in appropriate quantities). Distinct from 适度 (moderate in degree/extent — broader and more abstract) and 适当 (appropriate, suitable — more about correctness of choice than quantity).

Examples

1. 这道菜的食谱要求盐和胡椒适量加入，具体用量须厨师根据食材分量和个人口味灵活把握，无法给出精确的克数。 The recipe for this dish says to add salt and pepper in appropriate amounts; the exact quantity depends on the amount of ingredients and personal taste, so it can’t be given in precise grams.
2. 运动营养师建议运动后适量补充蛋白质以促进肌肉修复，但摄入量若远超身体实际需求，多余部分将转化为脂肪储存。 A sports nutritionist recommends consuming an appropriate amount of protein after exercise to promote muscle repair, but if intake far exceeds what the body actually needs, the excess will be stored as fat.
3. 园艺专家提醒，花卉浇水须遵循适量原则，水分过少导致植物萎蔫，过多则易造成根系腐烂，两者同样危害植物的正常生长。 A horticulture expert reminds you to water flowers in moderation: too little water causes wilting, while too much can lead to root rot—both are equally harmful to healthy growth.

Usage Guide

Context: cooking, health, medicine, agriculture, instructions

Tone: practical

Do Say

• 说明书指出，该补充剂适量服用有助于骨骼健康，但过量可能引发高钙血症。(The instructions say this supplement helps bone health when taken in moderation, but excessive use may cause hypercalcaemia.)
• 在配制发酵饮料时，糖分须适量加入，用量过少会导致发酵不充分，影响风味；用量过多则会使成品甜度过高，且可能抑制有益菌种的正常繁殖。(When preparing fermented beverages, sugar must be added in appropriate quantities: too little will result in insufficient fermentation, affecting the flavour; too much will make the finished product excessively sweet and may inhibit the normal reproduction of beneficial microbial strains.)

Don't Say

• 适量 when describing a moderate degree of an action or behaviour — use 适度 (in moderation, to an appropriate degree); 适量 is specifically about calibrating the quantity or volume of a substance, not the intensity or extent of a behaviour or policy

Origin & History

适 (appropriate, fitting) + 量 (quantity, amount — 日 + 一 + 里, measuring the extent of something)

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal